


Juicy Rumours - A Dash of Drapple

by athenaharmony



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Book 4: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Drapple (Harry Potter), Food, I Can't Believe I Wrote This, Other, Random & Short, Short One Shot, What Have I Done
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-24
Updated: 2019-06-24
Packaged: 2020-05-18 15:59:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 774
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19337809
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/athenaharmony/pseuds/athenaharmony
Summary: Draco Malfoy is loving his fourth year at Hogwarts. The rumour mill is working overtime, and it seems to have turned against Potter. All in all, things are looking up. Then, an unexpected encounter changes everything...





	Juicy Rumours - A Dash of Drapple

**Author's Note:**

> Wrote this one for fun shortly after finding out that Drapple was a thing. The fandom never ceases to surprise me.

The early autumn wind rustled the leaves surrounding Draco as he reclined on a sturdy branch, silently observing the black-robed students hurrying to and fro in the courtyard below. The selection of a fourth Triwizard Champion had sent the whole student body into a flurry of gossip to rival the previous year's uproar surrounding the return of supposed vicious criminal Sirius Black. Not to mention the school-wide fear that Black might have been trying to murder Precious Potter—Merlin forbid.

Draco rolled his eyes as he absently turned a shiny green apple end over end in his hands, tracing its surface with his thumb. It was exquisite, without a single bump or divot, its smooth flesh making it perfect to toy with before eating.

Potter, unsurprisingly, was the cause of the latest Hogwarts drama as well. His name bursting from the Goblet of Fire had come as no surprise to Draco. Rules simply did not apply where the "Boy Who Lived" was concerned; of course he would end up in the Tournament somehow. Perish the thought that Harry Potter could possibly go an entire school year without ending up on the _Prophet's front page._ All the same, this year seemed to be turning out rather more in Draco's favour. Instead of the usual hero-worship, Potter had become the target of such reproach that it had united the houses in the common goal of hating him.

The thought made Draco grin. It was about time, wasn't it, for Potter and his friends to have a little taste of reality? Rumour had it that he and his faithful sidekick Weasley had fallen out over the Goblet incident and were not speaking. The Gryffindor dormitory was in a sort of civil war, with Potter standing friendless.

All in all, it was shaping up to be a half-decent school year as far as Draco was concerned, especially considering that it was not uncommon for Champions to end up horribly maimed or even dead.

Still grinning to himself, Draco sank his teeth into the perfect apple, and everything fell away. As the tart juice welled up and spilled onto his tongue, he forgot all about Potter. He forgot the Tournament and Hogwarts altogether. Even the rustling leaves faded into the background as the apple ensnared his senses. He bit deeper into its flesh and was rewarded with a crunch that seemed to resonate throughout his body.

Suddenly ravenous and barely in control of himself, Draco devoured mouthful after mouthful, each bite another burst of bittersweet delight. Sticky juice dribbled down his chin and he roughly wiped his mouth with a sleeve of his finely tailored robes, not sparing a thought for anything except how soon he could take another bite.

All too quickly, it was over. He slumped against the tree trunk, staring with wild eyes at the ragged core he now held. After a moment, he became aware of his own heavy, rapid breathing, and quickly forced himself to be quieter. A quick glance earthward told him that, luckily, Crabbe and Goyle still stood patiently next to the tree, a pair of stupid but ever-obedient statues. Neither of them seemed to have noticed a thing.

He wet his lips and tasted the lingering sweet sourness there.

_What the hell was that all about?_

He stared at the apple core. It looked entirely mundane, and yet he was immediately overcome by a mad urge to bite into it again, to tear at it until there was nothing left but the seeds.

"Ugh!" he hissed under his breath. Tearing his gaze away, he wound his arm back to throw the apple as far away as possible. His shoulder tensed. He squeezed his eyes shut and swung his arm as hard as he could.

When he opened his eyes again, he found the apple core still clenched between his fingers. At the last moment, he had not been strong enough to let go.

A familiar voice finally dragged his attention away from the fruit.

"Yeah! Stay away from me!" Potter snapped from somewhere beneath Draco's tree.

His hand trembling slightly, Draco slipped the apple core into a pocket of his robes and slid back down to a place where he was in charge, antagonizing Potter was his only real concern, and his world still made a lick of sense. Even so, he could not ignore the slight stickiness on his hand, left behind where he had clutched the apple, unable to cast it away. Whatever it was that had happened between them up in the seclusion of the leaves, Draco and the apple were clearly not destined to part so easily.


End file.
